Primary election roster set

August’s primary election will feature contested races for the Park County Commission and for at least a couple local legislative seats.

The two-week filing period for the primary election closed on Friday with multiple candidates running for most local offices.

Former House District 25 representative Dave Blevins announced on the filing period’s last day that he intends to try taking the Powell-area seat back from current Rep. Dan Laursen in the Republican primary; Laursen bested Blevins in 2014. Whoever wins that battle will likely face Democrat Shane Tillotson of Powell in November’s general election.

Meanwhile, Rep. Sam Krone, R-Cody, declared Wednesday that he’s running for a fourth term in House District 24; his re-election plans had been uncertain after he was fired from his job as a Park County prosecutor in February because of inappropriate texts.

State Sen. Hank Coe, R-Cody, was the only local legislative candidate who appeared to be running unopposed. Coe had drawn intense criticism from a faction of the Park County Republican Party in 2014, which almost succeeded in censuring him that year, but that discontent hadn’t translated into any political opposition as of late Friday afternoon.

Six Republicans have announced plans to run for two seats on the Park County Commission, with Willwood resident Bob Ruckman being the last addition to the list.

Candidates who didn’t file by Friday’s deadline can still run with a third party, as an independent or mount a write-in campaign.

The primary election is Aug. 16.

Barring any last-minute filings, the list below shows who had filed by late Friday, placed in the order of when they declared their candidacy.

Park County Commission

Two seats available, representing the entire county

• Republican Jake Fulkerson of Cody

• Republican Lee Livingston of Wapiti (incumbent)

• Republican John Marsh of Powell

• Republican Boone Tidwell of Cody

• Republican Richard George of Cody

• Republican Bob Ruckman of Powell

House District 24

The western part of Cody, Wapiti, the South Fork and Sunlight and Crandall

• Republican Scott Court of Cody

• Republican Sam Krone of Cody (incumbent)

• Democrat Paul Fees of Cody

House District 25

The City of Powell and surrounding rural areas

• Republican Dan Laursen of Powell (incumbent)

• Republican Dave Blevins of Powell

• Democrat Shane Tillotson of Powell

House District 26

Lovell, Byron, Cowley, Deaver, Greybull, Garland and Frannie areas

• Republican Philip Abromats of Greybull

• Republican Jamie Flitner of Greybull

• Consitutionist Joyce Collins of Lovell

House District 28

Meeteetse, Basin, Thermopolis, Shoshoni and several points in between

• Republican Nathan Winters of Thermopolis (incumbent)

• Democrat Howard Samelson of Thermopolis

House District 50

The eastern part of Cody, Heart Mountain, Clark, Ralston and the Willwood

• Republican David Northrup of Powell (incumbent)

• Democrat Mike Specht of Clark

Senate District 18

The City of Cody, Wapiti, the South Fork, Heart Mountain, Clark, Ralston, the Willwood, Clark, and Sunlight and Crandall